Mutant Shock
by MysteryAgain
Summary: After defeating Apocalypse, the mutants at Xavier's School for the Gifted are returning to their normal routines. However, changes come in the form of new faces and hidden agendas. How will the new recruits adjust? How will all of the mutants cope with the new events?
1. Back to Cerebro

_Rriing!_ The first bell rang. It was a weekday morning at a school in Philadelphia. The first period class was just starting. High school students were heading to class.

Among the students was a tall, skinny, brown-haired teenage boy with glasses, who was slowly walking towards the other side of his classroom. As he made his way towards his desk, a thick-necked classmate stuck his leg out in front of him. Clumsily, the boy stumbled forward a few steps.

"Hey, Lewis," the brute growled quietly, glaring at him. "Watch where you're going."

"So-orry," he hastily and nervously replied, his eyes wide with fear. His voice was quiet, with a hint of a British accent. Even though he knew it was not his fault, he also figured it was best not to cross the school bully. Ever since he had moved to the States, the roughnecks of his new school had picked on him, thinking he was a wimp. "Wimp" was not the correct term, but it was true that Lewis never really was the type that would stand up for himself. He preferred avoiding confrontations. Like always, without another word, he carried on and took his seat at the far side of the classroom.

About a minute later, the tardy bell rang, and the teacher was in front of the class, ready to start the day's lesson. "Okay, class," she announced, "today's lesson will be on..."

A throbbing in his head began to harbor Lewis' concentration. Lately, he had been getting a lot of strange migraines. He had no idea why. The doctors could not find anything wrong, so they concluded that it must just be stress. Still, he wondered if things really were fine. Quietly groaning with discomfort, he shifted his attention back to the teacher.

"Turn to page 35 in your textbooks..."

Obeying the teacher, he turned to that page. He glanced over the text, trying to concentrate despite the headache. Suddenly, as he was reading, all of the words he saw rushed into his mind in a matter of seconds. In that time, he had done reading that would have normally taken a few minutes! It did not stop there. He was aware of every sight and sound around him. It was as if his mind was taking in every single piece of information in the room. The smacking noise of the girl chewing gum a couple of seats away from him, the guy behind him drumming his fingers, _everything_!

The now intense headache was unbearable. He grabbed his head and squeezed his eyes shut, hoping to turn off the information overload, but it was no use. He could not shut off his other senses. More and more kept flooding in. His head felt like it was going to split. It was too much!

He cried out in pain before collapsing onto the floor.

* * *

"_Name: Lewis Bailey. Residence: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Age: sixteen,"_ stated Cerebro as the computer screen rendered the boy's image.

The professor looked over the data. It had been a while since there had been new recruits. Of course, it had been a while since he had last searched, due to recent events, mainly Apocalypse. The New Mutants were about ready to become full-time X-men. It was about time he started finding new recruits.

As he backed up from Cerebro, he sent out a telepathic message. _Jean, please meet me in the library._

With the new information in mind, he exited Cerebro's room. He traveled down the hallway to the library. The young redheaded woman was already waiting for him.

"Good morning, Professor," Jean greeted. "Is something going on?"

"It appears we have gotten a hit on Cerebro," Professor Xavier stated. "I'm going to head over there right now. I would like you to come with me."

She smiled. "Of course, professor."

* * *

Lewis opened his eyes. He was no longer in the school, but rather in a small, bright white room. He was in the hospital. Turning to the side, he saw the faces of his concerned parents. They seemed relieved upon seeing their son awake.

A doctor walked into the room. "Ah, I see you've woken up," "How do you feel?"

"I think I'm fine now," he said, sitting up. "What happened? Did I faint?"

"It would appear so," answered the doctor. "But, things do seem normal. It might just be stress. We're going to run a few tests just to be sure."

"Okay," he replied. The doctor left the room. Lewis watched as a bald man in a wheelchair and a young woman entered the hospital room in his place. This puzzled him, as they did not look like doctors, and they certainly were not people he knew.

"You must be Mr. and Mrs. Bailey, I presume?" the man said to the parents. "If it is not so much trouble, may we have a word with your son?"

"What's this about?" asked the father, confused. "Are you doctors?"

"Let's say we might be able to help your son with what he's going through," he answered.

Lewis' parents exchanged glances. They were not quite sure what to make of the strangers. "Go ahead then, please," answered the mother, finally.

Both parents left the hospital room, leaving Lewis alone with the two people. "Hello, Lewis, I'm Professor Charles Xavier, and this is one of my students, Jean Grey," said the man, introducing himself and the woman. "We came here to discuss what happened earlier today."

"The fainting?" Lewis questioned with hesitation. His face bore an expression that was both startled and confused. How did they know? "Honestly, I don't really know what went on. Blimey, it was bizarre. Almost everything seemed to be rushing in. Things I saw... sounds... everything. I even remember them all now. It was too much."

"I see. I assume you're aware of what a mutant is by now."

"Yes," he replied. He looked down as he took a moment to think. Were they suggesting that he was a mutant? He had never really been against them, but never once had he thought that he could possibly be one himself. Could it even be possible? "So, I'm a mutant?"

"Indeed. We are mutants ourselves. If I may, I conjecture that at moments, your mind might be capable of processing information around you at incredibly fast rates. I'm also guessing that the reason you fell unconscious is that your mind was being overwhelmed."

"You can learn to control it at the Institute," Jean spoke up. "It's a place for people like us."

"This is your decision," said Xavier. "Whether or not you go is completely up to you."

Lewis stopped to think. He would be at a new school, and he was not quite sure how he would relate to these other mutants. Then again, the professor said that he could help him control his so-called ability. "I'd like to talk with my parents first," he finally answered.

* * *

It seemed things were normal at the Brotherhood of Bayville Boarding House. Todd and Pietro were arguing over whose turn it was to clean the living room, which, frankly, was a job no one in the Brotherhood wanted. Lance and Wanda just looked on annoyed. Fred, well... he was in the kitchen getting a "snack," which was really a sandwich made with an entire loaf of bread. He was just heading back to the living room when a certain redheaded, blue skinned shapeshifter entered the boarding house. It was Mystique.

"Uhh... whath ah you do-hing hehre?" he asked, his mouth still full of food. It was a stupid question, but then again, Fred was certainly not known for being smart.

"This is my house," she asserted, in a tone that was bizarrely both calm and irritated at the same time. "I should asking you that question."

The noise had alerted the rest of the Brotherhood. Pietro zipped in first, followed by his sister and the others. "What's going on?" asked Pietro. He then spotted Mystique at the entryway. "Oh..." he gasped, surprised.

"Now, I have work for you all to do, if you all want to continue living here."

"Umm.. no offense, yo," Todd piped up, nervously, "but didn't yo last plan go kerflop?"

Mystique glared at him. He slinked back in his usual cowardly fashion. Wanda, however, was not nearly as intimidated.

"You know what happened with Apocalypse!" Wanda shouted, angrily. Nearby, a table lamp exploded in response to her emotions.

There was indeed truth to that. Thanks to the plan, Mystique, Magneto, Professor Xavier, and Storm had been put under Apocalypse's control. Thanks to that, Wanda and Pietro had almost lost their father. If it had not been for the joint effort of the X-men, the Brotherhood, and a few others, many people would have died. On a similar note, Lance was well aware of how his involvement in both the Brotherhood and Mystique's plots strained his relationship with Kitty. As for Todd and Fred, they simply did not like her authoritative personality. In general, the entire group did not enjoy taking orders from Mystique.

Yet, Mystique was set on her own agenda. She crossed her arms. "If you aren't going to listen to my orders," she stated firmly, motioning towards the door, "then get out."

Wanda stormed out of the boarding house. Pietro and Lance soon followed. Todd and Fred exchanged glances, then shrugged shoulders. Not wanting the others to leave them behind, they left as well.

Todd hopped ahead to Lance, Pietro, and Wanda. "Where to now?" he asked.

The others looked among themselves. They were on their own with no place to live. "I don't know," Lance answered.

The woman glared at the now ex-Brotherhood members with contempt. She was now on her own, without anyone to aid her in her plans. Yet, she was not worried. She could always find more followers. Though, for now, she was going to need to clean up the place. The Brotherhood sure made a mess of it.

* * *

After Lewis was finished talking with his parents, the professor and Jean reentered the hospital room.

"I told them. They seemed... fine with it," he said. He had been quite nervous about the whole situation, worrying about what they would think. At first, they were quite shocked, but being loving parents, they accepted the fact.

"That's good to hear," answered the professor. "So, have you made your decision regarding the Institute?"

"Yes," he answered. He took a deep breath. "I'll go."

* * *

**Note: Okay, this is my first fic with OCs in it, so I'd love to know the hits and misses! Thanks for reading the first chapter! Shoutouts to my beta, BeingWhoIWishIWas!**


	2. Denial and its Pitfalls

A boy tossed his backpack into the corner of his room. He appeared to be a second grader, but one would say that something was off about him. Yet again, he had gone through a rough day at school. It was all too typical. Looking like a seven year old at sixteen was, lightly put, absolutely demeaning. No matter what he said or did, other people always thought of him as a little boy, not as a more competent high schooler.

The only explanation he could come up with was this: He was a mutant. He had been considering the possibility for some time. Ever since he saw the group of mutants fight the giant robot on the news, he suspected he was one. No matter how much his father denied it, it made the most sense. Why else would he have stopped aging at seven?

Suddenly, he felt an intense pain shoot through him, as if he was being pulled apart. Various objects in the room fell over as he staggered around and the seams in his clothes split. The pain brought him to the floor, but it was over as soon as it started. Gathering his thoughts, he looked at his hands.

"Agh!" he gasped, jolting to a standing position.

They were about twice as big! A quick look in the mirror sent him stumbling backwards in shock. He still was distinctly himself, as his hair was still the same light brown color and his eyes were still blue, but he now looked like a typical teenager.

_Knock, knock, knock._

Startled, he lost his train of thought. The same pain shot through him again as he returned to his original form.

"Clyde, ah you all right in there?" he heard his mother call.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he managed to respond. So it was true indeed.

* * *

Lewis wandered through the mansion. He had made it a point to himself to learn where everything was, so he would not get lost.

A pair of his fellow students caught his eye. If he remembered correctly, the blond haired boy was Bobby, and the Chinese girl was Jubilee. He watched as Bobby, with a mischievous expression, turned his hand into ice. Jubilee squealed in surprise as he stuck his iced finger into her ear. Bobby's laughter soon transitioned to a wide-eyed stare as he realized that his prank would have a consequence. He soon took off, running, with his friend in pursuit.

_Paf, paf, PAF_, went Jubilee's sparks.

"Ow, ow, OW!" yelped Bobby, as the fireworks hit him in the backside.

The Xavier Institute was nothing like Philadelphia, nor even , back in England. For one, it was a whole lot nicer, and for another, he was still getting used to being part of a household of mutants. Already, he had had his fair share of "mutant shock" there, ranging from seeing Jamie multiply before his very eyes after he accidentally bumped into him, to nearly having a heart attack the first time the demonic-looking, but friendly, Kurt "bamfed" right in front of him.

Suddenly, he felt the area's sights and sounds rush in. He could hear the lyrics of the loud music from one of the rooms and follow a conversation in another at the same time! He was aware of every sight, sound, and smell in the area. Everything he sensed was pouring in. Oh no, it was another information surge.

"Adjusting well, Lewis?" asked the professor, approaching Lewis.

"I think so," he replied, wincing from the headache.

"Remember, relax," the professor calmly urged, noting Lewis' struggle, "just like I've been instructing."

Lewis took a few deep breathes. A look of relief showed on his face as the overload subsided.

"I'm letting you know that I'll be out for a while. If your powers flare up, feel free to talk to Jean."

"All right."

The professor wheeled down the hallway. He would meet up with Scott and travel to Boston. Cerebro had just gotten another hit.

* * *

That evening, Clyde wandered into his older brother's room. He simply had to figure out more about this "mutation." After all, the possibility of finally being a normal teenager was worth exploring. Maybe he would be able to rid himself of this nightmare once and for all. Quietly, he rifled through one of the drawers, finally finding some of his brother's old clothes that he left behind when he went off to college. Rocker tees and jeans with huge holes in the knees were not exactly his style, but considering he would just shred his own clothes again, they would have to do.

Quickly, he changed into his brother's clothes, which were considerably big on him. He focused, attempting to recreate that afternoon's incident. Pain shot through him again, though it was not as bad as the first time. His brother's clothes were now a rough fit. He could not help but smile. For once, things were as they should be.

He could hear his parents talking in the other room.

"Look, so what if it is true that he's a mutant?" he heard his mother say.

"You know what happened to her!" he father shouted.

He knew well enough that "her" meant his Aunt Alice, his father's younger sister. He had always heard about her and the incident - she died in an explosion shortly before he was born. Investigators concluded that it was caused by a gas leak. From what he could gather, he could only assume that, for whatever reason, his father believed a mutant was responsible for her death.

"He's ouh son, and I wouldn't considah him dangerous. I'm beginin' to think that he really is a mutant."

"If he was, I would have thrown him out a long time ago. They're all dangerous!"

That did it. His dad acted like mutants were monsters capable of mass destruction, yet he denied that he was one, solely because his mutation did not seem to fit the bill. How could he think that way?

He stormed out of the room, into the sight of his rather shocked parents. "I AM a mutant, so deal with it!" he yelled at his father.

His father's expression showed both anger and utter despair.

"Wait! We can fix this!" his dad pleaded.

"Amos!" his mother scolded.

Same old, same old. Despite what were no longer suspicions but cold, hard facts, his dad was still clinging on to his hopes of having a normal, non-mutant son. This was none other than a case of outright denial.

"Sure, pretend it isn't true, because apparently, things would be bettah if I was normal!"

His father opened his mouth as if he was going to say something, but Clyde was not about to let him. He stormed out of the house, furious. He had never asked to be a mutant.

* * *

Meanwhile, outside of the mansion, a jeep pulled up in the driveway.

"Whoa, wait a minute," Pietro spat out. "_This_ was your brilliant idea? You're suggestin' we move in with those X-geeks?"

"Would you rather spend the rest of your nights in the jeep? Look, me may not have much of a choice here."

"Wanna know what I think?" Todd piped up. "I think ya wanna be closah to Miss You-Know-Who."

"I can only guess why you really tagged along," Wanda mumbled to herself, rolling her eyes.

"If you don't like the idea, fine," Lance stated. "But I will."

Pietro groaned. "I guess you're right," he mumbled, crossing his arms.

"Wait here," Lance ordered the others. "I'll go talk to him"

Lance walked up to the X-Mansion's huge door. Sighing, he knocked three times. The student answering the door was none other than Kitty.

"Hey, Lance! What's up?" she asked cheerfully.

"Is the professor there?" Lance asked.

* * *

"Good evening, Mr. Lambert," the professor greeted. Scott, a young man with red sunglasses, was right by his side on the doorstep. "I'm Professor Xavier, and-"

"He's not home. Now get lost, you freaks!" Clyde's father shouted, slamming the door in their faces. It certainly looked like they had walked in at the wrong time. It was certainly not the first time they had dealt with someone who hated mutants, but it was not exactly something one could get used to. There was a brief moment of silence between both of them.

"That was uncalled for. We can't just give up, right?" Scott asked, still a bit shocked from the father's reaction.

"Indeed," answered Professor Xavier. I think it's best we speak with Clyde himself. I am detecting his presence nearby."

In the meantime, Clyde's father went to his and his wife's bedroom. To his shock, suitcases were on the bed, and his wife was hurriedly packing them.

"What ah you doin'?" he asked, though it was obvious.

"I'm going to stay at my sistah's," she declared, with an angry and hurt tone. "You're tearing this family apawt."

"About me sayin' I'd throw Clyde out?" he asked. "I-I didn't mean it." He looked sincere, yet his behavior regarding the subject suggested otherwise.

Clyde's mother looked like she was about to cry. "Try telling your son that."

* * *

Kitty led Lance to the kitchen, where they both sat down at the table. Obviously, Lance was wanting to discuss something with the professor. This was certainly unusual enough to pique Kitty's curiousity.

"So, why were ya lookin' for the professor?" she questioned, keeping a cheerful demeanor.

"It's just that we..." Lance hesitated, "we might need a place to stay."

Kitty's eyes widened with a bit of shock. "All of ya? Like, I'm sure he'll be fine with it. But, um... what happened to the boardin' house?" she asked.

"Mystique kicked us out."

"Ohhh, I'm sorry," she replied, her expression softening. "But I bet you guys can st-"

_Ding_, went a timer.

"Oops, I forgot," she said, quickly getting up to grab a tray out of the oven. The muffins, well, were a bit overdone, but... close enough. She brought the tray back to the table. "Want one?" she offered.

"No, I'm good," he refused. As much as he like her, her cooking was not very good.

An unfamiliar person with glasses soon caught Lance's attention. He certainly was not someone he had met before.

"Lewis, you want one?" Kitty asked him, pushing the tray towards him.

"Sure. Thanks," he accepted, much to Lance's surprise. Funnily enough, it seemed that no one had warned him about her atomic muffins. The poorly-hidden expression of disgust on his face soon confirmed that. Trying to be discreet, he quickly ran out of the kitchen to spit it out.

Lance turned back to Kitty. "New guy?" he asked.

"Yeah. The professor's, like, been searchin' a lot," she said. "In fact, that's why he's gone now."

"What's taken' so long in here?" Pietro suddenly chimed in. Kitty and Lance practically jumped in their seats. The speedster and Wanda were standing in the doorway to the kitchen, curious about the situation.

She was close to was Lance, but she was not as sure about the rest of the Brotherhood. Yet, it appeared they were in need, so she did her best to smile and treat them with kindness.

"Hi. Muffin?" she offered, holding out the tray to them.

"Hey," Pietro remarked, "aren't those those muffins Lance always com-"

"Agh!" Lance exclaimed, his eyes filled with alarm. He immediately jumped to his feet. "Wait! Don't!" he interrupted, teeth clinched, quickly grabbing his shoulders in an effort to keep him from saying that in front of Kitty.

Luckily for Lance, Kitty's attention was now on Fred and Todd, who were now in the kitchen as well. She repeated the same gesture with the tray. The rest of the Brotherhood looked on with a dumbfounded expression as Fred and Todd each took a muffin and actually _ate_ it without any hint of disgust. So, there really _were_ people who would eat Kitty's cooking.

* * *

It was now dark, and Clyde had been walking for a few hours, still in teenage form. Walking did calm him a bit, but he was still in no mood to see his father again. A pain that felt like an intense pressure went through him. "Not now," he muttered to himself, straining to counteract the shift.

He spotted a couple of people approaching him. As they got closer, he could see that both were men. One of them was in a wheelchair, and the other was a tall and around college-age.

"You must be Clyde Lambert," said the one in the wheelchair.

Clyde's eyes grew wide in alarm, and he even almost lost his form. "Who ah you?" he asked, suspicious of these people.

"Allow me to introduce myself," he answered. "I am Professor Xavier, and this is one of my students, Scott Summers."

Clyde relaxed. "Oh, you're that guy they mention in the news," he said. "The one who runs that mutant school."

"Indeed," he answered. "I believe that you have figured out why we're here, then. We want to invite you to come and attend the Xavier Institute, where you can learn to control your abilities and meet others like yourself."

"Yeah, of course," he answered. Clyde did not take long to make this decision. At the moment, about any place was better than home. The two of them led him towards one of the strangest planes he had ever seen. All three of them boarded the aircraft. The inside of it was not mundane, either. Clearly, this was designed for some rather combative purposes.

Clyde winced as he sat down. The pain from his shift was bothering him yet again. His hands grabbed the edge of his seat tightly as he tried to fight the pain.

"You all right?" asked Scott, concerned.

"I'm good," Clyde answered, shaking.

Of course, he was not fine. The pain was practically unbearable. He had been hoping that if he ignored it long enough, then it would somehow go away. However, with each minute that passed, it was becoming more and more apparent to him that he could not hold a teenaged form forever.

"I believe there is something you've been trying to hide," the professor said, gently. "It's all right here."

Who was he kidding? He could not hide his true form much longer. Besides, they would find out anyways. Sighing, he let himself shrink back to his original, childlike form. It was humiliating, especially now since the clothes he was wearing were too big, but had he tried holding the form any longer, he might have passed out. Things just had to be this way. It seemed that for him, normalcy was something just out of reach. He could barely touch it, but he was not quite able to grasp it.

"We will make a stop before heading over to Bayville," the professor declared. "I believe your mother's worried about you."


End file.
